Federal background checks for gun purchases hit an all-time high of 21 million in 2020 (according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation). Nearly half (48%) of the new, first-time gun buyers were women, and of these female buyers, 21% were Black (according to the 2021 National Firearms Survey), none of which surprises self-defense expert Paxton Quigley.
“The pandemic caused many changes in American society, not the least of which was making people, especially women, feel afraid,” she said, noting that while the right to protect oneself is important, “I oppose military-style assault weapons and strongly believe in common sense gun regulations.”
Additionally, gun violence and intimate partner violence statistics are often intertwined, prompting millions of women to take control of their own safety.
“Because of this harsh reality, many women who would never dream of owning a firearm have joined the ranks of first-time gun owners,” Quigley said, adding that any woman who owns — or plans to own — a gun needs to arm herself with information and train with experts so that she has the best chance to safely defend herself against violent crime.
Quigley’s latest book, Armed & Female II: Never an Easy Target, aims to help guide readers through the process of making the initial decision to purchase a firearm, choosing the right one, finding the right path for learning how to shoot and care for the gun, and most important, keeping children safe from firearms. Quigley includes compelling true stories about women who have survived life threatening situations; everything readers need to know about handguns and non-lethal self-defense, including non-lethal strategies for personal safety at home and while traveling; and expert advice from some of the country’s most respected firearms safety instructors.
“Though written for women, this book is also excellent for men who are new to firearms or want to learn as much as they can as quickly as they can,” Quigley added. “Because when it comes to self-defense, what you don’t know can hurt you.”
About the Author
Paxton Quigley is the author of the bestselling women’s gun self-defense series: Armed & Female (hardcover, E.P. Dutton; paperbacks, St. Martin’s Press); Not an Easy Target (Fireside); Staying Alive: Armed & Female in an Unsafe World (Merril Press); and Armed & Female: Taking Control (Merril Press). She has taught personal protection strategies to more than 7,000 women in the U.S. and abroad.
No stranger to the media, Paxton has appeared on more than 300 TV and radio shows, including Oprah, 60 Minutes, The Today Show, Good Morning America and NBC Nightly News. She was briefly a bodyguard for Yoko Ono and other high-profile women, and taught self-defense to numerous celebrities, including actresses Laura Dern, Diane Ladd, Geena Davis and Judith Light.
For more information, visit www.paxtonquigley.com, or follow the author on Instagram at @Armed_and_female.
Armed & Female II: Never an Easy Target
Publisher: Grove Isle Press
Release Date: April 14, 2023
ISBN-13: 979-8387942594 (paperback)
Available from Amazon.com
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Reviews, photos, links to previous interviews and Q&As are available upon request.